Stolen Moments (song)
Encyclopedia
"Stolen Moments" is a jazz standard
composed by Oliver Nelson
. It is a sixteen-bar piece (in an eight-six-two pattern), though the solo
s are on a conventional minor key 12 bar blues structure.
The piece first appeared as "The Stolen Moment" on the 1960 album
"Trane Whistle" by Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, which was largely written and co-arranged by Oliver Nelson. It was not marked out as anything special, in fact the covernotes only mention that the trumpet solo is by Bob Bryant and that Eric Dolphy
's bass clarinet can be heard briefly on the closing. However, in the liner notes to Eric Dolphy: The Complete Prestige Recordings, Bill Kirchner states that this incorrectly credits Dolphy with playing what's actually the baritone saxophone of George Barrow, with Dolphy's contribution to the piece being the 2nd alto behind Nelson. Its first well-known recording was the version on Nelson's own 1961 album The Blues and the Abstract Truth
. Nelson's solo on this version contains "possibly the most famous" use of the augmented scale in jazz.
Singer Mark Murphy
wrote lyrics
for his 1978 version.
Ann Fischer later wrote different lyrics
to Nelson's original melody. They were first recorded on the 1987 album The Carmen McRae-Betty Carter Duets. This vocal version of "Stolen Moments" was given the alternate title "You Belong to Her".
Some recorded versions:
Other artists that have recorded the piece:
Ray Brown
, Caribbean Jazz Project
, Betty Carter
, Sonny Criss
, Joyce DiCamillo, Booker Ervin
, Freddie Hubbard
, Milt Jackson
, J. J. Johnson, Quincy Jones
, Oliver Lake
, Andy LaVerne
, Lorne Lofsky
, Herbie Mann
, Jon Mayer
, Carmen McRae
, One for All
, Hilton Ruiz
, Andy Summers
, Bill Taylor
, Turtle Island String Quartet, Sadao Watanabe, Grover Washington, Jr.
, Snakefinger
, Avi Lebovich & The Orchestra, Soil & "Pimp" Sessions, Fancie
Jazz standard
Jazz standards are musical compositions which are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive list of jazz standards, and the list of songs deemed to be...
composed by Oliver Nelson
Oliver Nelson
Oliver Edward Nelson was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, arranger and composer.-Early life and career:...
. It is a sixteen-bar piece (in an eight-six-two pattern), though the solo
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
s are on a conventional minor key 12 bar blues structure.
The piece first appeared as "The Stolen Moment" on the 1960 album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
"Trane Whistle" by Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, which was largely written and co-arranged by Oliver Nelson. It was not marked out as anything special, in fact the covernotes only mention that the trumpet solo is by Bob Bryant and that Eric Dolphy
Eric Dolphy
Eric Allan Dolphy was an American jazz alto saxophonist, flutist, and bass clarinetist. On a few occasions he also played the clarinet and baritone saxophone. Dolphy was one of several multi-instrumentalists to gain prominence in the 1960s...
's bass clarinet can be heard briefly on the closing. However, in the liner notes to Eric Dolphy: The Complete Prestige Recordings, Bill Kirchner states that this incorrectly credits Dolphy with playing what's actually the baritone saxophone of George Barrow, with Dolphy's contribution to the piece being the 2nd alto behind Nelson. Its first well-known recording was the version on Nelson's own 1961 album The Blues and the Abstract Truth
The Blues and the Abstract Truth
The Blues and the Abstract Truth is a jazz album by Oliver Nelson recorded in February 1961. It remains Nelson's most acclaimed album. It features a lineup of notable musicians: Freddie Hubbard, Eric Dolphy , Bill Evans , Paul Chambers and Roy Haynes...
. Nelson's solo on this version contains "possibly the most famous" use of the augmented scale in jazz.
Singer Mark Murphy
Mark Murphy (singer)
Mark Murphy is an American jazz singer based in New York. He is most noted for his definitive and unique vocalese and vocal improvisations with both melody and lyrics...
wrote lyrics
Lyrics
Lyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...
for his 1978 version.
Ann Fischer later wrote different lyrics
Lyrics
Lyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...
to Nelson's original melody. They were first recorded on the 1987 album The Carmen McRae-Betty Carter Duets. This vocal version of "Stolen Moments" was given the alternate title "You Belong to Her".
Recordings
"Stolen Moments" has been recorded numerous times. Although Oliver Nelson himself has never used the title as an album title, quite a lot of other artists have. In 1994 the title was used for a compilation album in the Red Hot AIDS Benefit Series, which helped popularize this and other jazz standards among a wider audience.Some recorded versions:
- 1966 by Booker ErvinBooker ErvinBooker Telleferro Ervin II was an American tenor saxophone player. He was perhaps best known for his association with bassist Charles Mingus....
on the album Structurally SoundStructurally SoundStructurally Sound is an album by American jazz saxophonist Booker Ervin recorded in 1967 and released on the Pacific Jazz label. The album was rereleased on CD in 2001 on the Blue Note label with four bonus tracks.-Reception:... - 1968 by Phil WoodsPhil WoodsPhilip Wells Woods is an American jazz bebop alto saxophonist, clarinetist, bandleader and composer.-Biography:...
and his European Rhythm Machine on the album Americans Swinging in Paris - 1970 by Ahmad JamalAhmad JamalAhmad Jamal is an innovative and influential American jazz pianist, composer, and educator. According to Stanley Crouch, Jamal is second in importance in the development of jazz after 1945 only to Charlie Parker...
, album The AwakeningThe Awakening (Ahmad Jamal album)The Awakening is an album by American jazz pianist Ahmad Jamal featuring performances recorded in 1970 for the Impulse! label.-Reception:The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 4 stars stating "By 1970, pianist Ahmad Jamal's style had changed a bit since the 1950s, becoming denser and... - 1978 by Mark MurphyMark Murphy (singer)Mark Murphy is an American jazz singer based in New York. He is most noted for his definitive and unique vocalese and vocal improvisations with both melody and lyrics...
, album Stolen Moments - 1979 by Jimmy RaneyJimmy RaneyJimmy Raney was an American jazz guitarist born in Louisville, Kentucky most notable for his work from 1951–1952 and 1962–1963 with Stan Getz and for his work from 1953–1954 with the Red Norvo trio, replacing Tal Farlow. In 1954 and 1955 he won the Down Beat critics poll for guitar...
and Doug RaneyDoug RaneyDoug Raney is an American jazz guitarist. He is the son of Jimmy Raney.Raney began his career in his father's band, with Al Haig, at the age of 18. He later played in a duo with his father...
, a father and son jazz guitar duo, album Stolen Moments - 1988 by Frank ZappaFrank ZappaFrank Vincent Zappa was an American composer, singer-songwriter, electric guitarist, record producer and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa wrote rock, jazz, orchestral and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed...
on the album Broadway the Hard WayBroadway the Hard WayBroadway the Hard Way is a Frank Zappa live album recorded at various performances along his 1988 world tour. It was first released as a 9-track vinyl through Zappa's mail order label Barking Pumpkin in October 1988, and subsequently as a 17-track CD through Rykodisc in 1989.This album was...
(trumpet solo by Walt Fowler); after the trumpet solo, Zappa invites Sting to sit in with the band, and he sings a unique, modified version of the PoliceThe PoliceThe Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...
song "Murder by Numbers" over the "Stolen Moments" vamp. The band finishes by returning to the Nelson melody. - 1990 by Lee RitenourLee RitenourLee Mack Ritenour is an American jazz guitarist who has recorded over 42 albums, appeared on over 3000 sessions, and has charted over 30 instrumental and vocal contemporary jazz hits since 1976. One of his most popular songs was the smash hit, “Is It You” in 1981. Ritenour is considered to be a...
, album Stolen Moments - 1991 by Stanley JordanStanley JordanStanley Jordan is an American jazz/jazz fusion guitarist and pianist, best known for his development of the tapping technique for the guitar....
, album Stolen Moments - 1991 by New York VoicesNew York VoicesNew York Voices is an American vocal music group. The group was formed in 1987 from an Ithaca College alumni group. The original group consisted of Darmon Meader, Peter Eldridge, Kim Nazarian, Caprice Fox and Sara Krieger. They released their first, self-titled album on GRP Records in 1989...
on the album Heart of Fire. - 1994 by United Future OrganizationUnited Future OrganizationUnited Future Organization otherwise known as UFO is a nu-jazz duo made up of Japanese-born and Frenchman . In 1994, the group appeared on the Red Hot Organization's compilation album, Stolen Moments: Red Hot + Cool...
on the compilation albumCompilation albumA compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
Stolen Moments: Red Hot + Cool - 1996 by Jimmy SmithJimmy Smith (musician)Jimmy Smith was a jazz musician whose performances on the Hammond B-3 electric organ helped to popularize this instrument...
on the album Angel Eyes - 2002 by Kenny BurrellKenny BurrellKenneth Earl "Kenny" Burrell is an American jazz guitarist. His playing is grounded in bebop and blues; he has performed and recorded with a wide range of jazz musicians.-Biography:...
, album Stolen Moments - 2003 by Gap MangioneGap MangioneGaspare "Gap" Mangione is a jazz pianist, composer, arranger, and bandleader from Rochester, New York, United States.Born and raised in Rochester, Mangione's younger brother is Grammy-winning flugelhornist Chuck Mangione. Members of a music-loving family, both Gap and Chuck took up instruments...
, album Stolen Moments - 2005 by Telefon Tel Aviv, album "Remixes Compiled"
Other artists that have recorded the piece:
Ray Brown
Ray Brown (musician)
Raymond Matthews Brown was an American jazz double bassist.-Biography:Ray Brown was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and had piano lessons from the age of eight. After noticing how many pianists attended his high school, he thought of taking up the trombone, but was unable to afford one...
, Caribbean Jazz Project
Caribbean Jazz Project
Caribbean Jazz Project is a Latin jazz and Afro-Cuban jazz group including Dave Samuels, Paquito D'Rivera and Andy Narell. They might be best known for their 2002 album The Gathering. They have recorded seven albums, five for the Concord Jazz label, one for Inak Records and one for Heads...
, Betty Carter
Betty Carter
Betty Carter was an American jazz singer renowned for her improvisational technique and idiosyncratic vocal style...
, Sonny Criss
Sonny Criss
William "Sonny" Criss was an American jazz musician.An alto saxophonist of prominence during the bebop era of jazz, he was one of many players influenced by Charlie Parker.-Biography:...
, Joyce DiCamillo, Booker Ervin
Booker Ervin
Booker Telleferro Ervin II was an American tenor saxophone player. He was perhaps best known for his association with bassist Charles Mingus....
, Freddie Hubbard
Freddie Hubbard
Frederick Dewayne "Freddie" Hubbard was an American jazz trumpeter. He was known primarily for playing in the bebop, hard bop and post bop styles from the early 1960s and on...
, Milt Jackson
Milt Jackson
Milton "Bags" Jackson was an American jazz vibraphonist, usually thought of as a bebop player, although he performed in several jazz idioms...
, J. J. Johnson, Quincy Jones
Quincy Jones
Quincy Delightt Jones, Jr. is an American record producer and musician. A conductor, musical arranger, film composer, television producer, and trumpeter. His career spans five decades in the entertainment industry and a record 79 Grammy Award nominations, 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend...
, Oliver Lake
Oliver Lake
Oliver Lake is an American jazz saxophonist, flutist, composer and poet. He is known mainly on alto saxophone but also performs on soprano saxophone and flute....
, Andy LaVerne
Andy LaVerne
Andy LaVerne is an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger.LaVerne studied at Juilliard School of Music, Berklee College, and the New England Conservatory, and took private lessons from legendary jazz pianist Bill Evans...
, Lorne Lofsky
Lorne Lofsky
Lorne Lofsky is a jazz guitarist in Toronto, Canada. He is currently teaching at York University.Lofsky started off playing rock music but took an interest in jazz upon hearing the Miles Davis album "Kind of Blue". Hearing this record was, for Lofsky, a musical revelation that led to a dramatic...
, Herbie Mann
Herbie Mann
Herbert Jay Solomon , better known as Herbie Mann, was a Jewish American jazz flutist and important early practitioner of world music...
, Jon Mayer
Jon Mayer
Jon Mayer is an American jazz pianist and composer.- Early years :Mayer graduated from the High School of Music and Art in Manhattan and briefly attended the Manhattan School of Music....
, Carmen McRae
Carmen McRae
Carmen Mercedes McRae was an American jazz singer, composer, pianist, and actress. Considered one of the most influential jazz vocalists of the 20th century, it was her behind-the-beat phrasing and her ironic interpretations of song lyrics that made her memorable...
, One for All
One for All (band)
One for All is a New York City-based hard bop sextet, featuring Eric Alexander , Jim Rotondi , Steve Davis , David Hazeltine , John Webber and Joe Farnsworth . The style of the group has been likened to 1960s-era Blue Note jazz and has been described as being reminiscent of Art Blakey's Jazz...
, Hilton Ruiz
Hilton Ruiz
Hilton Ruiz was a Puerto Rican American jazz pianist in the Afro-Cuban jazz mold, but was also a talented bebop player....
, Andy Summers
Andy Summers
Andy Summers is an English guitarist born in Poulton-le-Fylde, Lancashire, England. Best known as the guitarist for rock band The Police, he has also recorded twelve solo albums, collaborated with many other artists, toured extensively under his own name, published several books, and composed...
, Bill Taylor
Bill Taylor
Commodore William Leonard 'Bill' Taylor was an Australian Naval Officer, Politician and Administrator. He was born in Toowoomba, Queensland and later served that City and surrounding districts as the Commonwealth Parliamentary representative.-Career:* 1957 - 1988 Military Service, Royal Australian...
, Turtle Island String Quartet, Sadao Watanabe, Grover Washington, Jr.
Grover Washington, Jr.
Grover Washington, Jr. was an American jazz-funk / soul-jazz saxophonist. Along with George Benson, John Klemmer, David Sanborn, Bob James, Chuck Mangione, Herb Alpert, and Spyro Gyra, he is considered by many to be one of the founders of the smooth jazz genre.He wrote some of his material and...
, Snakefinger
Snakefinger
Philip Charles Lithman , who performed under the stage name Snakefinger, was an English musician, singer and songwriter. A multi-instrumentalist, he was best known for his guitar and violin work and his collaborations with The Residents.-History:Lithman was born in Tooting, South London, and came...
, Avi Lebovich & The Orchestra, Soil & "Pimp" Sessions, Fancie